Joshua stevens



@uiten grains @anni @Hita JOSHUA STEVENS, 0F CHICOPEE FALLS, MASSACHUSETTS. Letters Patent No. 61,773, dated February. 5, 1867; antedated January 21, 1867.

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TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCRN:

Be it known that I, JOSHUA STEVENS, of Chicopee Falls, in the county of Hampden, and State ot Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Machine for Pulling Out Hat Tips; and I do hereby declare that the following is i full, clear, and exact description of the same,vreference being had to the accompanying drawings. forming a part of this specification, in which- Figure I is a plan view of-a machine constructed accordingto my invention; and

Figure? is a central vertical section of the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the two figures.

In the manufacture of felt hats, the irst operation commonly performed, after felting, hardening, and sizing the body, is the pulling out of the tip, to change it from a conical to a ilat or nearly flat form. This has usually been done by hand, and has required considerable time -and skill.

This invention consists in a machine in which a novel arrangement of stretchers, having a radiating movement from a common centre, are simultaneously operated to effect the pulling out of the tip in a very perfect and expeditious manner. Others skilled in the art will be enabled to construct and operate my invention from the following description, having reference to the drawings. I

A suitable horizontal table, A, of circular or other form, is provided with three or more pairs of dovetailed guides, B B, radiating from a common centre. The table A is slotted between each pair f these guides, to admit of a cog-wheel, C, which gears with a rack, d, on the lower side of a slide, D. These cog-wheels are each ixed to a horizontal shaft, s, and these shafts are geared together by a series of bevel-wheels, b, so that when motion is given to the oscillating lever L on one of the said shafts, each cog-wheel, C, is made to move in a direction towards or from the centre of the table. Rigidly secured to each of the slides, D, is an upright or standard, E, which carries ou its upper end a horizontal flat stretcher, e. The standards E and stretchers e correspond in number to the number of the slides, guides, and cog-wheels previously alluded to, and the horizontal stretchers e form, when closed together, a circular horizontal disk, or elevated table, over and upon which is placed the conical felted hat body, as clearly shown in vertical section by the heavy red line in fig. 2. The hat body being placed over, and pulled and held down upon the outer edges of these stretchers when they are in a closed position, the lever L has a vibrating motion given to it, which causes the stretchers e, through the medium of the gearing already described, to move from and towards the centre, and gradually pull out or stretch the tip of the hat until it becomes suiiciently flattened for the subsequent blocking operation. Toprevent the stretchers from moving out too far, a slotted strap, F, is employed, the slots of which work over pins in the two opposite cog-wheels, and form a stop, limiting the distance travelled by the stretchers e. I do not confine myself strictly to the mechanism for operating the stretching arms which are shown in the drawings, as there are many lother mechanical devices which may be used to accomplish the same result; and instead of a lever, as represented, to work the gearing, and 'through them to give a back and forth motion to the stretchers, a. treadle, connected to the same with a spring to return the stretchers, may be very conveniently employed.

lHaving described the construction and operation of my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

` The stretcher-s e e, standards E E, and slides D, in combination with each other and with a supporting table A, or its equivalent, substantially as and for the purpose herein specified.

l JOSHUA STEVENS.

Witnesses:

GEORGE S. TAYLOR, HENRY E. Pnrrrs. 

